In what appears to be a growing occurrence in the news, a laptop belonging to the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration was stolen from a government-owned vehicle on Aug. 22 in Baltimore. The computer contains personal information – including names, dates of birth, and CDL numbers – of 193 CDL holders from 40 motor carrier companies.
The incident was reported to police and an investigation is ongoing, according to the U.S. Department of Transportation. Investigators say the laptop contained no financial or medical information. Further, the agency says it has no reason to believe that the perpetrators targeted the computer based on knowledge of the data held on the CDL holders.
The 40 motor carrier companies have been notified of the potential security breach, and they also have been given the names of their employees whose information may be on the laptop. Officials in the following states also have been notified: Alabama, California, Florida, Georgia, Illinois, Kentucky, Maryland, New Jersey, New York, North Carolina, Pennsylvania, Texas, Virginia and Washington, D.C. Affected individuals can call a hotline at (800) 832-5660 for more information.
Other cases involving stolen government computers with vital personal identification on U.S. citizens has cropped up in the news several times this year. Earlier this month, more than 81,000 Florida CDL holders were notified that their data was compromised when a laptop was stolen from a government vehicle. And in the most infamous case, a government computer was burgled from a Veterans Administration employee’s home. The computer, containing data on scores of veterans, recently was recovered.
Affected motor carriers in the Aug. 22 event include:
